


Save Them

by Jak_the_ATAT



Series: Four Endings for Adler and Bell [4]
Category: Call of Duty (Video Games)
Genre: Adler is secretly a dad on the inside, Adler supplements with a thought, Amputation, Based off the good ending, Bell is nonbinary, Bell just says one thing about it, Comfort, Dadler, Fluff, Hospitalization, Hurt/Comfort, Implied abuse, Just normal COD violence, Make it a thing, Sometimes OOC, That's it, implied burning, injuries everywhere, light anti-lgbtq, or a crude form of it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:54:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27781108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jak_the_ATAT/pseuds/Jak_the_ATAT
Summary: BOCW SPOILERSFull summary inside
Series: Four Endings for Adler and Bell [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2032369
Comments: 5
Kudos: 46





	Save Them

**Author's Note:**

> Summary: A talk on a cliffside with Bell helps Adler settle his choice on Bell's fate. 
> 
> A little OOC. I tried.

"Save them."

"Adler, he's of no use to us anymore. He could be disposed—"

"Save. Them."

Before him, Hudson shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot. "Adler, you're becoming too emotional—"

"I don't care! Save them first!"

Hudson's disappointment couldn't be expressed to its fullest with simply his pursed lips. "Don't forget where your loyalties lie, Russ." With that, the older agent turned and left the room, leaving Adler to his own thoughts as the painkillers finally kicked in.

Adler closed his eyes, drifting into a trance where he could replay the fall of Solovetsky in his head. At the time of the event, everything felt like a blur. A calculated blur, but one that ran on autopilot. Now, far from the dangers of Solovetsky, he could count every time luck sided with him whether he realized it in the heat of battle or not. He remembered every gunshot, every scream, every rock on the walkways, every bomb and where it hit. The grumbling ground coming undone under his feet. The trip through the air he took after a bomb landed near him and the pain in his side when he contacted the floor. The sting of burns as his raw skin rubbed against the ground. And of course, the discomfort in his ribs as Bell carried him over the shoulder.

Bell. The only reason he was still on this planet was because of Bell. Had it not been for Bell's returning memories recalling every corridor in Solovetsky's architecture, they would have never survived the bombing. Stupidly, Adler did not share that sense of bomb radius Bell did, and he paid the price with a concussion, second degree burns, broken ribs, and a ruptured ear drum. How he survived was just lucky.

How Bell survived was more than luck. A piece of the roof collapsed, and Bell threw Adler down the stairs to save him just as the ceiling landed on them. Both remained trapped until a clean-up crew came and rescued them.

Now, it was a matter of whether Bell would pull through to live longer or if this was their end. 

* * *

Adler was released first. Apparently Hudson decided to ignore his request to Bell first. Bell would be released in a few hours, or so Park told him. She also told Adler to go bugger off and relax around the safehouse while the rest of the team packed up for their flight to Holland tomorrow. And being the workaholic he was, Adler spent the first two hours asking for something to help with. So Park handed him a cigarette and lighter and sent him outside.

He didn't walk far. In fact, he only went a few dozen feet in front of the safehouse. Along the cliff face, rocks lined a natural staircase down to a small ledge. From the ledge, Adler could overlook the sea and watch birds flying around. Sure, it was hell to get down there, but the pain was worth the view.

Adler found a spot near the edge and sat down, lighting the cigarette butt and sticking it in his mouth. It felt good to have it back in his mouth after a full day without one yesterday. Frankly, he impressed himself, considering how horribly addicted he had become (then again, he spent most of the day sleeping, and when he was awake he just ate). He sometimes wondered if he should slow down to live a longer life, only to convince himself it was better to live a good life, not a long one.

Alone with his thoughts, Adler busied himself by thinking about Bell. From details Mason and Park gave him, Bell chose to call a 3% chance of living as perfect odds. They pulled through the night until their odds guaranteed survival. What shape Bell was in, neither could describe in great detail. Mason refused to elaborate on his descriptions and Park turned out to be a terrible describer when it came to injuries.

Not that it would really matter. Adler had no choice but to shoot Bell. Hudson's orders. Or rather Black's orders. Or rather, Reagan's orders paraphrased by Black and translated by Hudson.

Who was he kidding, it was just Hudson's orders. 

Which, Adler realized, is exactly why he was out of the gurney faster than Bell. No matter how alive or dead Bell was, they wouldn't be leaving Russia alive. The more Adler dwelled upon the idea, the sicker he became in the stomach. A few months ago, he wouldn't hesitate to kill the Soviet. However, Bell had a way of pulling strings and working their way into the crew's heart.

_'Wonder_ _of they're_ _the same_ _strings Bell pulled to be Perseus's favorite.'_

Adler sighed, the butt's smoke burning the back of his throat. It wasn't like him to get his personal feelings so involved. _'You're too emotional for this,'_ his brain sang in the most mocking voice it could create. Though Hudson wasn't wrong, and that was the worst part. 

His sixth sense tingled, sending the hairs on his neck that hadn't been burned on end. Instinctively, Adler reached for his M1911 as he peered over his shoulder.

Just Bell.

Adler's stomach jerked as he watched Bell struggle down the rocks. The normally nimble and sure-footed Soviet swayed precariously, their body threatening to tip just a little too far and send them off the cliff. And yet, Bell kept their energy up right until the end, where they finally decided they had enough and toppled down the last rock onto the ledge. Adler scrambled to his feet, a dreaded sense churning inside him, yet by the time he was up, Bell had recovered. The kid sat up, considered trying to reach the edge, then gave up when pain overtook them. So Adler sat next to them, putting them on his good ear's side. "Hello Bell."

Bell smiled a little, a warm youthfulness lighting their eyes. "Did Park kick you out of the warehouse too?"

"She did." It's then Adler could see the makeshift leg braces locking Bell's knees and ankles, leaving Adler to wonder how the fuck they even got down here. Bell's skin seemed far too pale for the bit of sunlight peeking through the clouds. Most notably, Bell didn't have their left arm anymore.

Bell shuddered, wrapping their remaining arm across their chest. "It's cold..."

Adler shrugged. "A little, yes." Had this been a different circumstances, Adler may have made a snarky comment about Bell being cold in Russia when he was from Russia. But not now. Not when Bell looked this sickly.

A light breeze brushed against Adler's skin, cooling his burns a little. He took a deep breath, taking in the fresh air and letting it mix with the smoke on his throat. "Arctic air... Clears the head, doesn't it?"

Bell chuckled before whimpering as the breeze sent violent spasms through their trembling body. Adler felt guilty. With all the hell the two raised together, he never once stopped to consider the more tender side of Bell. Seeing Bell so weak and vulnerable made Adler's stomach even more acidic at the thought of Bell's nearing demise. He scanned Bell's face, trying to decide what to tell the kid next.

 _'Stop worrying..._ _He'll recover. He's young.'_ Except Bell wouldn't recover when he's dead. 

And so he kept talking. "Bell, you made two extraordinary sacrifices to stop Perseus. One was without your knowledge...the other, you made that decision on your own accord."

"You don't need to lie... I know what you're gonna do with me." The bitterness in Bell's voice matched the bite of the cold.

Well then... No use hiding it now. Adler took a moment to enjoy a breath from the butt as he worked his next thoughts together. "Listen, I just want you to know that this little thing that's happened with you and me... it was always for the greater good." Bell scoffed and rolled their eyes, leaving Adler scrambling for a follow-up comment as he chucked the butt over the cliff. "You're a goddamned hero, you know that, kid?"

"Most heroes don't get killed at the end of their journey."

"Heroes make sacrifices," Adler tried to reason. Bell eyed him suspiciously before turning their attention to their legs, removing the leg braces and pulling their knees to their chest with great difficulty to try and stay warm.

Adler spoke again, his decision made up as he watched Bell rock back and forth, a habit the former Perseus agent did when things distressed them. "That's why I wanted to ask you for one more I hope you'll understand."

"I don't care. Just kill me..." The two's eyes locked. No youthful light remained in Bell's eyes. Only pain, fear, betrayal, and something more Adler couldn't grasp. "I should have known you weren't to be trusted when you were so comfortable with my whole double gender shit." Bell turned their gaze towards the ground, resting their chin on their knees. "I guess I'm lucky you didn't burn me earlier."

 _'If it makes you feel better, part of me is still uncomfortable with it,'_ Adler thought. _'But pretending to be your long time friend made it easier to accept it.'_

He, of course, didn't say that. "Bell," Adler began. "Give up your life in Russia and Perseus. Come back to the States with me." Bell's head shot up, wide eyes staring into Adler's soul. "You can work with the CIA, and I'll let you stay with me until you've built your own ground. I'll also make sure your memories are probably returned and your body cleaned of all drugs we used."

Silence.

Adler hated silence. The longer Bell took to respond, the more insecure Adler became about his words. He was almost sure he said exactly what he wanted to, yet his memory began to fog up, making him wonder if he said anything at all.

"You're lying."

"Not this time."

"How would I know?"

Adler searched for a decent response only to realize everything sounded like a lie. So he went for the most blunt option. "I guess you wouldn't."

"Then tell me how you got that scar."

The question put all his thoughts to a halt. He never talked about his scar with anyone. Only two people knew the truth. The rest knew the crazed lies he told.

Bell deserved the truth as well...

"My ex-wife." Adler heart tightened at the thought of her. A wave of fear washed across him, and he quickly reminded himself she wasn't here. Did he have to say more? Probably. "Never knew car keys made such good weapons." Maybe some proof as well. "Sims knows the story. You can cross-examine him."

Bell's skeptical look disappeared into one of sympathy. "I'm sorry for asking." Adler waved them off, trying to force his nerves to calm down. He really could go for a cigarette right now. Shame he threw that one butt away.

Thankfully, his uneasiness did not go unnoticed. Bell switched the topic. "You're sure you can restore my memories?"

Nodding, Adler created a mental checklist with every precaution on it. He would not screw this up. "You're not the first person who's experienced MK Ultra. I can confirm your memories will be fully returned."

"Good."

The wind picked up and Bell's teeth clattered. "We should go in," Adler said, giving in to his concerns. He didn't bother hiding them either. "You're freezing."

"I don't wanna see Hudson yet. He hates me."

That brought a chuckle from Adler. "Hudson hates most people. Even if he trusts them."

"I can tell." The two exchanged grins before Bell gave into the cold again.

"At least let me try and warm you up?"

Bell nodded. Adler slid over to sit next to Bell and pulled them close to his body, rubbing circles on their back in hopes of warm the kid up. Apparently it worked because Bell nuzzled right into Adler's chest, beaming.

' _Still so young they don't hesitate to trust me again.'_ Part of Adler wondered what kind of background the kid had to make a 24 year old so naïve. Then again, regardless of their background, someone had to watch out for them until Bell could handle themself in a country so different from the Soviet Union.

Adler didn't mind picking up that role.

**Author's Note:**

> I live for Dad!Adler. 
> 
> The ending square is now complete! This was probably the hardest fic of the four for me to write because I feel like it's a bit forced with the ending dialogue. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed anyway! Thanks for reading!


End file.
